Wishing the Moon
by BelovedSlayer
Summary: Buffy discovers that marriage is not what it appears to be and soon, she and Angel must face the challenges that come with divorce. Will they be able to repair a broken bond?
1. Heartbreak Manor

Title: Wishing the Moon

Author: Beloved Slayer

TV Show: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Rating: T

Summary: Buffy discovers that marriage is not what it appears to be and soon, she and Angel must face the challenges that come with divorce. Will they be able to repair a broken bond?

Author's Note: This is a direct sequel to my previous story, Under the Moon. This will be a three chapter story, but each won't be long. This chapter might leave a few questions that needs to be answered, but within the next two chapters, it will. Enjoy guys.

Five years later…

She seals the lid of the cardboard box shut with a strip of duct tape, her legs splayed across the floor without notice. The uneven box was filled to the brim with the last of her belongings; photos, jewelry, and other various mementos; reminders of a journey that was on the verge of dissolving.

For the first time in years, she didn't feel happiness nor relief that was typically expected from filing for separation. Instead, she felt as if someone had torn her heart and heaved it aside with disdain. The single thought that currently whirled in her mind was to reach for the covers and sleep until nightfall. But she knew that doing so would not make the ache in her chest lessen.

The reason for their separation was entirely different than what was normally used in those unfortunate circumstances.

It was gnawing at her, but she knew that there was no going back for either of them. Just the necessary courage to take the first step forward was what was needed.

But nothing came without a risk.

"Did you put the rest of the things in the car?" came Angel's emotionless voice. He leaned against the egg white door frame, arms folding across his chest in a closed off manner.

His facial expression was sullen.

"Don't you have anything else to say besides that? How about mustering up an 'I'm sorry' at least?" Buffy snapped, bare feet sweeping against the hardwood floors. No longer did her eyes held the carefree, youthful expression that had once dominated her features.

Throughout the years, those hazel eyes had hardened, marred with traces of crow's feet and wrinkles as a result of the stresses and burdens they had endured.

Angel bristled. "I know this isn't easy…"

Buffy scoffed. "How could you even say that? If you hadn't done…what you did, this wouldn't be happening at all. We would still be together, but you decided to take the alternate route and reverse it. Why the hell did you do this?" At these words, Buffy toppled the treasured claddagh ring across the room, narrowly missing Angel by a mere inch.

His expression transformed into infinite sadness, but she wasn't going to give in.

"Because I can't continue to live like this. Not when it comes at a price that I'm still not willing to pay for. I can't do it."

And that was the sole answer he provided for her. But it wasn't enough.

For Buffy, the ability to fathom that his decision would be enough to tear them apart for the second time in their lives was incomprehensible.

How wrong she turned out to be.

Hearing his words, her heart lurched at the realization that they were nearing the end of their journey.

Silently, for her, she was more than willing to fight to protect what was hers.

For what she was about to lose would be more than unbearable.


	2. A Lesser Half

Author's Notes: Thanks guys for the reviews. Here's chapter two, although it is a little less shorter than the previous chapter. Enjoy.

One year later…

Two hours ago, the divorce proceedings had went underway without incident. Despite the lawyers present, Buffy had implanted her distance, avoiding Angel's eyes that were frequented on her. Once, she saw a closed off look written on his face, but for the rest of that morning, she paid him no mind.

Ten minutes ago, the papers announcing her separation was finalized and made official by the judge. No matter how much she had attempted to sway an answer out of her ex-husband, he wouldn't give in. Now, she stands motionlessly in between the bathroom stalls, dapping a tissue underneath her blurring eyes, her spirits on the verge of being drained.

The urge to shred the divorce papers that she held between her hands burned within the back of her mind. If only she had a lighter.

_A Slayer who's now divorced from her ex-husband who was once a bloodsucking vampire. Who had thought? _

Without much effort, she tosses the crumpled tissue aside and tries to hide the devastation and pain that the mirror before her reflected. Trails of mascara ran down her face, her perfectly coifed hair now in disarray.

Suddenly, she felt herself going back in time to the day after her 17th birthday.

A day she had never forgotten. The day when he had broken her heart and left it in shambles. The memories still brought a stab directly into her chest in spite of the years passed since that event.

And it had been _his_ idea to separate.

Her lips whimpered, her eyes cascaded with wetness, her breathing short, but nothing could be done. She couldn't confine him to be married to her despite her feelings for him.

Despite the love that ran so strongly for him.

She couldn't do anything but comply to his wishes and allow him to walk out of her life. The last time she had seen him was during the moment when the papers were being signed in the judge's chambers.

No apologies, no words of comfort. No embraces. Just the unwelcome silence that billowed between them.

Since then, she realized that perhaps distance would be the best option.

But no, even the welcoming thought didn't suppress the hurt that was still arriving in droves.

Her strengthen resolve and determination, however hard she was trying to bring forth, didn't stop the Slayer from delving into the nearest stall, dropping to her knees while cradling her face, and bursting into an array of tears.

Something needed to be done to save them.

Perhaps she would turn to her last resort.

The Oracles.


	3. Destination of Hope

Author's Notes: Once again, my thanks to you guys who reviewed. I'm glad you've enjoyed the story. This is the final chapter. The ending was a little tricky to create, but hopefully I was able to pull it off. Any questions you've might have had should also be answered here. Enjoy.

Six months later…

In the City of Angels, everything was serene. The sun shone brightly. The clouds were light and airy, and the air was obscured with the calls of seagulls, intermixed with the scents emanating from the closest waves.

Somehow, the scenery unnerved her. She sped through nearby Venice Beach, the occupants full of smiles and light hearted laughter as they strolled casually along the shore. Those emotions that she had once felt were replaced by the emptiness that was all too familiar to her.

The wedded bliss that was experienced at the beginning of her marriage was now vehemently consumed by that same ache.

Quietly, she gazed at the passersby, her heart tinged with envy.

But seconds later, she forcefully came to her senses and allowed the feeling to subside, using the moment to press her focus onto a more important task at hand.

Her foot accelerating against the gas pedal, tires were squealing while the car raced against the setting sun, reminding the Slayer that she only had a small amount of time left to spare before her future was no more.

BABABABABABA

The car abruptly stopped in the middle of downtown Los Angeles. Night had fallen, and the streets were spared saved for a few cab and bus drivers. Barely anyone except for the residents were aware of the loneliness that ruled the side of L.A. that Buffy had entered. To her silent relief, her final destination was a walking distance away.

Deep inside, she prayed that Angel was not lurking anywhere near the vicinity. The City of Angels was forever his, they both knew.

She patted a pant leg that held the remains of a sharpened stake, preparing to fight should the need rise.

"Here goes," she muttered to herself, placing the car into an empty lot. Opening the door, she welcomes the brisk air into her lungs, tendrils of her blonde hair billowing from behind.

All eyes ahead, she sprinted towards the mail office, a variety of feelings drifting and clouding her mind.

Memories of walking down the aisle alongside Angel, claddagh rings held in hand, the many times they had kissed and survived the frequent nights, their first time, surpassed her, and in its place, a sharp tug at her heart could be felt.

And before she could make the images disappear her eyes captured an image of a tall, chestnut haired man. One that she knew too well.

A sense of alarm and panic spread through out her veins, urging her to move.

_No! He can't do this. Not like this. _

_There's still time.._

_There's still time.._

She runs as quick as her abilities allow her, feeling the weight of her heart pulsing against her chest.

She doesn't take the chance to pause.

She had to reach him before it was too late.

BABABABABABABA

"Lower being, are you certain of your decision? Once it is made, it cannot be reversed," the brother Oracle warned. "It is forever."

"I understand. I want to do this right. If it means not having to risk any part of our lives anymore, whether from me or other demons, even the slightest hint of danger, then so be it," Angel interjected, looking anywhere else but the mystical beings that hovered before him. He closed his eyes, his mind praying for the forgiveness that he was sure he wouldn't receive from the one person that mattered to him.

That _still _mattered to him. His feelings remained as it always were.

"So be it," came the sister Oracle's reply.

A sense of serenity quickly enveloped him, and motes of gold dust could be felt against the slits of his eyes and cheeks.

"What are you doing?" came a shrill female voice. He knew who it was at once.

_Buffy. _

"Angel, what are you _doing?_" she cried. She ran towards him, but a single touch was impossible for her.

"Giving us a second chance. A _better _chance," he solemnly murmured, but the words were tinged with a look of hope and love blazing across his chestnut eyes, eyes that made Buffy stop completely in her movements.

"Welcome home, Liam," announced the sister Oracle with a mischievous grin.

"Liam?" Buffy's voice was puzzled.

"A sure guarantee that Angelus will not return, despite the humanity rewarded to his alter ego," the brother Oracle confirmed.

"All of what he did, he did it for _that?"_

This time, it was Liam who spoke, stepping outside the dust that was shielding him. His modern clothes had been replaced by those he had worn centuries ago. For whatever reason, Buffy was not sure.

"Not just for that, Buffy, but for _us._ Even as a human, how could I be sure that there wasn't a clause for what was given to me? How was I not sure that _he_ wouldn't find some way to return and hurt you? I couldn't take that chance. I wanted us to live like a normal couple should."

His words spoken, he slowly approached her, caressing his hand against her face, gingerly touching it as if it doing so for the first time in millennia.

"Your memories?" Buffy questioned, her eyes blinking with tears, her mouth agape.

"They're still here. For everything else, for what I've put you through, I'm so sorry that I had to do that. Being human wasn't enough to stay with you. I wanted to be sure that no demons or vampires would come between us. That being with me wouldn't put you at any risk. Because I want forever with you, and I wanted to make sure that this life we'll share would be safe from all of that. I'm sorry you believed that I was going to…" At this, she crushed her lips against his.

They didn't show an ounce of care at the audience they had. All that mattered was that they had a true chance of starting anew.

"I love you," Angel crooned against her ear, his arms circling her waist, never wanting to let go.

"I love you too," Buffy's words muffled against his shoulder, "And I forgive you…Liam, or Angel. I'm sorry I acted the way I did. I didn't know."

"I didn't want you to." She felt him smile against her shoulder.

"His memories of being Angelus will disappear once you return to your world, but of Angel, after the curse, will not. You are free to leave. Go in peace."

With a sudden flash, Buffy and Liam were once again standing among the denizens of Los Angeles, hands intertwined.

"I almost lost you," Buffy stated. "I didn't think I could bear living with that. Not after everything." She buries her head against his chest.

"It's what we do. We fight. Remember, like you said: fighting is hard. It's painful, and it's every day."

For the first time in a while, Buffy laughed. He remembered.

"I say we go walk down the pier and spend the rest of the night there," he suggested.

"Mm. Sounds good. Let's go...Angel."

Liam grins, a soft laugh escaping him. "Angel it is. Still."

In perfect silence, they walked hand in hand.

They would welcome whatever was held in their future. Perhaps a second chance of marriage would embrace them.

But for now, Buffy truly felt that she was in the arms of her normal boyfriend.

Fin.


End file.
